Sanyukta adjusted her mask as she rushed to get the bar set up for the business mixer with a masquerade theme being hosted at a plush residence in the suburbs. YoYo, her senior in college had asked her to help out at the party, she had a reputation for being professional and today she was his bar-back. They had under half an hour to get the drinks going.

Once she had the glassware in place she set out the garnishes, juices and syrups while YoYo loaded up the ice bins and put bottles for chilling. As the first guests began arriving she quickly arranged the hors oeuvre bar with bowls containing cocktail nuts and trays of fruit and vegetable skewers with dips, falafel in pita and assorted salads and sushi.

As both of them got busy dispensing drinks her eyes took in the scene around the venue, corporate types in smart casual attire could be seen breaking the ice over Margaritas and nibbles as they exchanged business cards and discussed prospects with their potential clients. A sophisticated woman in a really short powder blue cocktail dress seemed the centre of attention, although there was a fair share of pretty young things engaged in conversation with the men present. Just then the host seemed to step forward to receive a couple of important guests and Sanyukta nearly dropped the cocktail she was putting together to see Renuka Shekhawat accompanied by her son Randhir step into the room.

A round of introductions followed and things went back to being normal again, though the arrival of the young man seemed to trigger feminine attention and quite a few interested looks were cast upon him. Sanyukta prayed that she would not be noticed, thanking her stars to have remembered to don the mask which kept her face hidden. Her hands were busy pouring drinks but her eyes followed Randhir as he met people and played his part of a business scion building his iconic legacy, dressed to kill in a fitted black shirt and his trademark designer jeans.

As she had suspected he was soon surrounded by a cordon of interested young women who seemed to know his background and his net worth. He was courteous beyond reproach to them while his mother continued to discuss business around him. This went on for about an hour, by then Randhir had done most of his talking and was looking for an excuse to exit. Just then there was a swish of blue and he was being led toward the bar by the woman in the short dress, his arm firmly grappled in hers. While she ordered a couple of tequila shots for herself she asked him for his choice of drink, he just called out for the bartender's choice without a glance at the young girl behind the counter. Sanyukta built a really potent Long Island Ice Tea, reached for YoYo's bar kit, slipped in a couple of pills into the drink making sure she was not being watched, gave the drink a stir and handed it to Randhir along with a cocktail napkin.

She watched beady-eyed as his companion pulled him into a hidden alcove. She was all over him as he took a few sips of his drink. Sanyukta's bile rose to see her trying to get intimate with him, she whispered something about feeling unwell to YoYo and rushed to the back area, not being able to take it anymore.

Just as he tried to distance himself from the woman Randhir's phone rang, it was Yasmeen calling, asking if he could pick her up in a few minutes, the place she mentioned was quite close to where he was. With a sigh of relief he excused himself, said goodbye to the host and his curious mother and left from there. In a few minutes as he drove towards the place she had mentioned he spotted the familiar veiled face. As he wondered if she would ever reveal herself to him he noticed his head was starting to throb inexplicably.

By the time they were home he felt worse and rushed to the toilet feeling terribly sick. As he dragged himself back into his room a worried Yasmeen asked him what the matter was, when he told her she stepped out for a couple of minutes and returned with some lemonade forcing him to gulp it. She made him lie down on his bed and began massaging his shoulders, neck and his head with what smelled like lavender oil, her expert thumbs and fingertips relieving his tensed muscles slowly.

He asked her to switch off the lights as they were hurting his eyes and she obliged. She went back to patiently working his pain off with her fingers, this time his head placed comfortably on her lap. He could not tell for how long she continued, but with each passing second she was filling up his heightened senses. He could feel her breath close to him just as he could hear his heart pounding to have her so near. She was like a drug to him, he could not stop himself anymore and pulling her into his arms he captured her lips in a long passionate kiss. His tongue explored every crevice of her delicious startled mouth as his hands caressed her everywhere and soon she was responding with equal fervour. With her eyes tightly shut she savoured every moment of the intimacy, wanting time to stand still. It was their first, but could easily have been the world's longest kiss. They lost track of how long they remained latched on, by the time they were done his headache was gone and feeling content they slept off peacefully in each other's arms.